Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Miu Miu Fall 2017

Miuccia
Prada rarely fails to deliver, and in the face of one of the greatest
times of political uncertainty, she had this sage advice to offer, “It’s
about the madness of glamour, in front of an uncertain future”. Or, to
paraphrase this fashion phenomenon in the words of the goddess Michelle
Obama, 'when they go low, we go high'. Put simply Fall 2017 was an open
love letter to diversity and celebrated creative expression through
personal style, no matter how mad or eccentric. Clashing psychedelic
print flares and tunics and fluffy pastel baker-boy hats seemed
reminiscent of Shail Upadhya, a muse of the late Bill Cunningham. Upadhya, a
retired U.N. official is somewhat notorious for wearing plaid skirts,
coloured jackets and loud newsboy hats- often together, and much to the
dismay of colleagues. Like so many of the style icons I admire, there's
a certain devil may care attitude and a killer wardrobe full of
patterns, print and colour. It also includes an outfit fashioned out of
an old ex-couch, which speaks volumes of a commitment to the environment
and eye for interior decorating.

Although not a definitively masculine element, the counterpoint to the bold psychedelic prints were slinky
lingerie slips with a mass of flowers anchoring the hem. Matching each
bouquet were kitsch baker-boy hat and the show-stealing, ultra-glamorous
pastel fur coats with exaggerated collars. I'm excited at the prospect
of the high street looking to Miu Miu Fall 2017 as a basis for their
range of winter coats, because honestly who doesn't love a fluffy pastel
coat? Miuccia Prada isn't alone in presenting big fur coats, just one week earlier in London, Anya Hindmarch
presented her vision of a winter wonderland filled with gargantuan
shearling hats, pastel fur coats and ravishing fur stoles. On paper,
there's strikingly similarities between the themes explored by Anya
Hindmarch and Miuccia Prada, but Anya took inspiration from Nordic
themes, whereas Miuccia's muse was art deco with the occasional mod.
Therein lies the dichotomy between pieces loosely inspired by the 1940s,
including the glittery jewels, knit sweaters
with their big shoulders and the slinky slip dresses dripping in paillettes. The demure was kept in check with the eccentric by way of PVC rain macs, high heeled saddle shoes and huge crazy-framed sunglasses.

Fall 2017 was so much more than a glamorous collection framed within a political context- with Miuccia Prada also using the runway as an opportunity as a call to arms within the fashion industry for more diverse casting. While one could hardly argue that the runway reflected body diversity in its many shapes and forms, the move came as a breath of fresh air, given that a decade ago Prada set the beauty standard as a white woman with blond hair. Albeit an accidental move, this time round the casting was a conscientious decision coming from the highest levels of the organisation. There has been some commentary marking the pivot as ‘modern glamor’, however it’s nothing more than a much needed overhaul of the fashion industry as a whole. No matter their skin tone, the exaggerated, feminine silhouettes and happy hues carried all the hallmarks of the eccentric Miu Miu aesthetic which was effusive, girly and madcap. Long live diversity, and long live maximalism in all its chaos including slinky party dresses with fur snow boots and Swarovski crystal buckles.